A new study has found James Bond has a severe and chronic alcohol problem. He is seen sipping on alcohol precisely 109 times in his films over the past six decades.
Bond is a fictional British Secret Service agent and was no stranger to alcoholic drinks, the South China Morning Post reported. Now, according to the new study published in the Medical Journal of Australia, Bond has a drinking problem, and he was performing some risky actions while under the influence of alcohol.
Public health experts at the University of Otago in New Zealand analyzed the movie of Bond starting 1962 until 2015, so they can understand his patterns of alcohol use.
Nick Wilson, the lead author of the study, said chronic risks include frequently drinking before fights, chasing or driving vehicles, operating complex machinery or devices, high stakes gambling, have guns or knives in the bed, extreme athletic performance and sex with enemies, and contact with dangerous animals. He said Bond's films were very good for studying the trends in behaviors like drinking and smoking.
The study has found that British spy met more than half of the criteria for alcohol use disorder which was defined by the American Psychiatric Association's DSM-5 classification system for mental disorders.
One of his films, Quantum of Solace, Bond was seen drinking about six Vespers, and the mixture includes tonic wine, vodka, and gin. The researchers said the amount of alcohol could raise Bond's alcohol blood level by about 0.36 grams per deciliter - almost high enough to cause heart failure, coma, or death.
But that drinking incident doesn't compare with one instance in a Bond book, researchers added, wherein 007 consumed 50 units of alcohol per day. Wilson explained this level of consumption could kill everyone.
This isn't also the first time Bond's drinking habit has been analyzed. In 2013 a study published in the Medical Journal had discovered that the British spy's alcohol intake in the book could put him at high risk of multiple alcohol-related diseases, as well as early death. The study further noted his ability to function has been inconsistent with the mental, sexual, and physical functioning expected from someone drinking this much alcohol.
Meanwhile, New Zealand researches said in their study that Bond should seek professional help and they offered suggestions how he can minimize his risk in the short-term. They advised him not to drink alcohol while on his job, particularly when taking complex tasks. Also, he should also avoid drinking with enemies and having sex with them as they could likely capture or kill him.
